Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) Holdings Raised by Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM - Free Report) by 151.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 20,020 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 12,066 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in Waste Management were worth $4,635,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WM. Westend Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Waste Management by 126.9% during the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 118 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. West Branch Capital LLC grew its holdings in Waste Management by 69.0% during the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 120 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Adalta Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.40% of the company's stock.

Waste Management Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE WM traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $229.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 501,842 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,705,975. Waste Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.59 and a 52-week high of $242.58. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $231.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $227.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.64.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The business services provider reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.14 billion. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.67% and a return on equity of 35.67%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Waste Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WM. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Waste Management from $241.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Melius Research upgraded shares of Waste Management to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $263.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Waste Management from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Melius started coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research note on Monday, June 9th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $252.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Devina A. Rankin sold 57,888 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $237.36, for a total transaction of $13,740,295.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 83,934 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $19,922,574.24. This trade represents a 40.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Rafael Carrasco sold 674 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $236.81, for a total transaction of $159,609.94. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 16,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,917,311.02. The trade was a 3.91% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.